Monday, March 30, 2009

Our little boy turned four this month and he had one strong desire--to have a birthday tree. Off we went to Skye Nursery to find something that would fit the bill. He decided upon a Lemon Cypress. The staff at Skye was very kind and patient with him as they showed him different options. The tree will winter in our home and summer on the deck. It can grow to 9 feet and needs re-potting every two years. We decorated it with simple paper ornaments adorned with photos of his previous birthdays and their corresponding numbers. I'll show you how to make these with photos of the baby girl, soon. A birthday tree--just lovely.

Thursday, March 26, 2009

Here is the little wall hanging I promised. It has the one of the little eggs, bunnies, and dollies that I sketched and shared. I guess I haven't shared the dollies, yet. If anyone wants to have them, just leave a comment and I'll post them. They were so fun to sketch and stitch. I have been doing so much of it lately. You see, my little girl is a climbing machine, so I can't sit at my sewing machine. Hand stitching is portable and permits the proper level of supervision for this busy little bee of mine. I've also sketched and stitched four seasons of a tree that I need to make a pillow or hanging of and share, too. If you'd like to see close-ups of the stitching, the egg, bunny and chick are with the postings that have the sketches. It was so fun and I can see them on ornaments and tea towels.

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Skip to My Lou hosts all kinds of fun, but last week, they had a giveaway that I was fortunate enough to win. Anna-Maria of MimiTENS makes sweetly embroidered mitts that stay put on little ones and scarves that appear to have pockets. What fun to win! Please to stop by her site and see what she creates.

Sunday, March 22, 2009

I offered up some sketches of chicks and bunnies earlier. Here are some eggs. I'll have photos of a little spring wall hanging I did with these later this week. I've also provided better sketches of the bunnies and chicks on the previous post. I hope you enjoy them. Spring fever has definitely caught us! The crocus are up, the tulips are pretty, green shoots and the garden is planted. What signs let you know spring is here?

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Jennifer at JCHandmade is a creative rock-star! Not only does she create the yummiest of things from vintage and new materials, but she also provides tutorials and patterns for her lovely creations. If you haven't visited her, you really should do so. I had seen her purchase some beautiful porcelain buttons and knew I had to have whatever she made that included them. I bought one of the cuffs you see above from her etsy store today. Maybe you need to do a little shopping for yourself or someone you love at her store, too.

Saturday, March 14, 2009

My mother is magical. With a couple of measurements gained by a phone call, a vintage pattern and a desire to make an Easter Dress, this is what my baby girl will get on Monday when Cookie and Papa fly in for a week-long visit. This dear little eyelet dress looks quite a bit like the one I made for my confirmation. Something tells me that is what my mother had in mind.

Sunday, March 8, 2009

I caught the sketching bug last week. I just wanted to sketch some little spring items that I could embroider to make a wall hanging and maybe stitch some tea towels for my mother. You are welcome to use these sketches for personal embroidery. I wish the quality was better; sadly, I don't have software to create computer sketches. If you like them, just use transfer paper or a light box to copy the image onto your cotton or linen. When I have the wall hanging put together, I'll post a photo. Have fun!

Monday, March 2, 2009

I don't know about you, but charm packs are extra alluring for me. When I can't afford a whole collection, it is the easy way to get my hands on those yummy patterns. So many others in blogland have great ideas for what to do with these little squares, too. I thought I'd get a collection together to share.

If you have some ideas, I'd love to add them and share your links.

1. Scarf--For toddler/kid size, sew nine of them together and back it with flannel, fleece or linen (depending upon the season). For teen/adult size, I sew eleven of the squares together and do the same.

2. Belt--Sew the blocks together to the desired length, cut a mid-weight interfacing to that length as well. Fold block strip in half and iron. Iron ends into the center. Top-stitch both sides, add the d-rings and finish opposite end. Viola!